A Clash of Gods - Chapter 74
Chapter 74 The Upright Judge
Dou Lianzhong said embarrassedly, “My Lord, since you asked me to sign a loan agreement, I have no objection.”
“Wait!” Governor Mo raised his hand. “It’s not that I asked you to sign a loan agreement. If you owe money to others, you have to pay. Since you have damaged the family heirloom of the Marquis of Honor, you should pay him theoretically. It’s not up to me but yourself whether you sign a loan agreement or not. If you sign an agreement, the case will be closed, and then you just need to discuss the compensation with the family of the Marquis of Honor. If you don’t want to sign an agreement, it doesn’t matter, and I can give today’s file to the Ministry of Penalty and ask them to handle this case.”
“No. I am going to write a loan agreement,” Dou Lianzhong responded in a hurry.
He knew that the six ministries of the country were independent. The Ministry of Penalty and Ministry of Revenue minded their own business. They might cooperate with each other on specific matters, but they couldn’t interfere in the other party.
If today’s file was given to the Ministry of Penalty and the news spread, somebody might cause trouble as there were two fatal mistakes on the record.
At the moment, Dou Lianzhong had to write a loan agreement as Governor Mo said and prevent the file from spreading. Then he would discuss with his family how to cope with it.
The paper, brush pen and ink were ready. Under Governor Mo’s gaze, Dou Lianzhong went to write an agreement and then gave it to him. Governor Mo glanced at it and frowned slightly. He waved Yang Ning over and asked, “How do you think about this agreement? If it’s okay, he can sign it now.”
Yang Ning scanned it and replied in an instant, “No. It’s said on it that he damaged a colored glaze horse. Dou Lianzhong, do you want to play a trick by words? You damaged the family heirloom of the Marquis of Honor, not a colored glaze horse.”
“I did damage a colored glaze horse and don’t care if it’s a family heirloom.” Dou Lianzhong was furious. “I wrote the agreement honestly.”
Governor Mo frowned. “It appears that you two will continue to argue. I can do nothing but leave the case to the Ministry of Penalty…”
Dou Lianzhong got frustrated soon and stuttered helplessly, “Fine. My Lord, I, I will write as he said.” He glanced at Yang Ning resentfully and then wrote a new agreement. Yang Ning received it and was satisfied after checking it. Governor Mo told Dou Lianzhong to sign and then gave the agreement to Yang Ning. Yang Ning put it in his pocket and laughed. “Master Dou, my family will discuss how you will compensate. Don’t worry. I won’t ask a high price.”
In a rage, Dou Lianzhong saluted Governor Mo. “My Lord, I am off now.” Then he turned to leave. Yang Ning shouted, “Master Dou, tell Zhao Xin that he can go to my mansion to get the compensation at any time. My family will pay all the debts and would never repudiate any debt.”
Dou Lianzhong snorted and left in a fury.
Yang Ning then saluted Governor Mo. “My Lord, thanks for upholding justice. I am greatly appreciated.”
He was smart and certainly found that Governor Mo appeared fair but was partial to him.
In fact, before entering the Capital Bureau, he prepared to fight a battle of wits and try his best to make Dou Lianzhong write an agreement.
But things went on more smoothly than he had imagined. Governor Mo found fault with Dou Lianzhong twice and had them recorded. Because of the record, Dou Lianzhong had to write the agreement.
He was curious and wondered if Governor Mo had some relationship with the family of the Marquis of Honor and why he was partial to him.
But since Dou Lianzhong dared to let the Capital Bureau handle this case, it meant that Governor Mo had no connection with the family of the Marquis of Honor. Otherwise, Dou Lianzhong wouldn’t have come here.
Governor Mo was called Upright Mo, and he was just and impartial, always able to settle lawsuits correctly. Today he heard the case and was not unfair, but he was partial to Yang Ning more or less. It was abnormal for a dutiful judge.
Governor Mo looked calm with a straight face. He got up and left, while the clerk followed him with the files. Both of them kept silent.
Yang Ning and Zhao Wushang looked at each other and felt surprised.
Governor Mo suddenly stopped when he walked to the door and made a gesture. The clerk bent down and went out first, and the four guards left quickly.
“You saved a child in the flower market yesterday?” Governor Mo didn’t turn around and asked all of a sudden, “Why did you save him?”
Yang Ning was stunned for a while as he didn’t expect Governor Mo to ask such a question and then remembered that he had saved a child from the horse’s hooves of King Shu’s heir in the flower market yesterday. In shock, he thought of Lei Yonghu.
He remembered that Yuan Rong said Lei Yonghu either worked for the governor of the capital or was related to the Ministry of Penalty. He didn’t think much then, but now he realized something at once.
“When a horse would hurt somebody and I am there, I won’t stand by and do nothing no matter who would be hurt.” Yang Ning thought for a while and then asked, “My Lord, do we need a reason to save others?”
Governor Mo responded casually, “There are many people who would stand by and do nothing.” He paused for a minute and then asked, “I heard that you were injured when saving that child and if you were careless, you would risk your life, right?”
“That’s a bit of an exaggeration.” Yang Ning laughed. “Even if the horse trod on me, I would be disabled at most and wouldn’t lose my life.”
Governor Mo nodded slightly and turned around slowly. Putting his hands behind his back, he looked Yang Ning up and down, still expressionless. “You are as brave as your father indeed.” Then his face fell. “But your father was brave to protect the country, while you are brave to cheat others.”
“Ah?” Yang Ning replied immediately, “My Lord, you…”
Governor Mo sneered. “Can you fool me? What family heirloom? And it was given by the late emperor? It was just a common colored glaze horse. It costs less than three or five taels of silver in the market. What Sagittarius and Big Dipper? Do you think you can cheat me?”
Yang Ning realized that the governor was clear about his trick, but even so, he was partial to him. So he was sure that the child he had saved must be related to Governor Mo.
“Only for once. You can’t do that again.” Governor Mo looked indifferent and continued before Yang Ning spoke, “I will send people to investigate the fire in your pawnshop.” Then he stopped talking and turned to leave.
After Governor Mo went away, Yang Ning heaved a sigh of relief and then asked Zhao Wushang in a low voice, “What’s Governor Mo’s name?”
“Mo Zheng!” Zhao Wushang answered simply.
Both of them left the Capital Bureau and returned home. When Yang Ning reached the main hall, he saw Gu Qinghan waiting there. Seeing him come back, she got up and walked to him, with worry on her beautiful face, asking, “Ning, you went to the Capital Bureau? What on earth happened?”
Yang Ning laughed and told her everything in detail. Gu Qinghan opened her big pretty eyes wide and asked in surprise, “Did you say that Dou Lianzhong wrote a loan agreement?”
Yang Ning took the agreement out of his pocket and gave it to Gu Qinghan. She glanced at it and saw the signature on it, getting more astonished. “A family heirloom?”
“It was just a common colored glaze horse.” There was nobody else around, so Yang Ning wouldn’t hide it from Gu Qinghan. “We can only cope with Dou Lianzhong in this way. With this agreement in hand, Zhao Xin wouldn’t dare to come to get the compensation. When I am in a good mood, I will take this agreement to ask for payment of debt.”
Gu Qinghan had been worried about how to deal with the huge compensation for Zhao Xin, but Yang Ning solved the problem so easily. She couldn’t help but laugh. “Kid, you can’t play such tricks in the future. If somebody finds the truth, it would be a disaster.”
“Since I have done it, I won’t let others know.” Yang Ning chuckled. “Aunt, don’t worry. I just play such tricks on rascals. Should we deal with Dou Lianzhong in aboveboard ways?” He lowered his voice. “But we should still be alert to the Dou Family. This time we must have ruined their plan, but we don’t know if they will play other tricks.”
Suddenly they heard the footsteps and Steward Qiu’s voice from outside. “Third Lady, are you in?”
“Come in.” Gu Qinghan walked to Steward Qiu, who came in. She asked, “Have you dealt with the matters there?”
Steward Qiu replied, “I have talked to the shopkeepers. They would check their losses these days and give us half a month to prepare. We are long-time neighbors, and they had no objection. I have calculated roughly. We need to pay those shops about ten thousand taels of silver in total. Moreover, except for Zhao Xin’s pawn tickets, we still have pawn tickets of more than twenty thousand taels of silver. We can’t get through it without fifty or sixty thousand taels of silver.” He sighed. “We have less than two thousand taels of silver in cash in the mansion… My Lady, it’s really a difficult time.”
Gu Qinghan furrowed her beautiful brows. Although Yang Ning had solved the problem of Dou Lianzhong and they didn’t need to worry about paying Zhao Xin more than ten thousand taels of silver for now, they couldn’t avoid paying others compensation. Even if they wouldn’t pay Zhao Xin, they still needed at least forty thousand taels of silver to deal with the compensation.
Since the old Marquise of Honor was alive, the family was free from corruption and didn’t have other illegal income except the normal income. They received the rent of three thousand families and had several hundred hectares of land as well as the profit of two shops. They gained only fifty or sixty thousand taels of silver every year. Speaking of the income in the account book, they were wealthy among the people in the country.
In fact, the marquis’ family spent less than this amount every year.
Steward Qiu suddenly stated, “We haven’t got any news from Jiangling. There must be something wrong. My Lady, we are waiting for the silver from Jiangling to get through the difficult time temporarily. If the silver from Jiangling can’t arrive, we can’t get through it. Shall we send somebody there to have a check?”
“We have sent people there several times, but there is no news.” Gu Qinghan frowned. “Steward Qiu, make preparations. Today I will set out to Jiangling.”
Steward Qiu got anxious. “Ah? My Lady, you will go to Jiangling in person?”
Gu Qinghan replied, “It has delayed for more than one month, which is unprecedented. There must be something significant.” She glanced at Yang Ning and thought of what he had said earlier. She also believed that the silver from Jiangling was not something independent. Yang Ning guessed that the silver from Jiangling, the fire and even the assassination in the villa might be relevant and there was somebody behind the scenes, and Gu Qinghan thought it made sense. “I have to go to Jiangling personally.”
“But here… My Lady, how about I go there and you stay at home?” Steward Qiu pondered for a second and then assured her, “I will bring the silver back.”
Gu Qinghan responded, “Steward Qiu, you contact the people outside at ordinary times. I am a woman and it’s inconvenient for me to see them. You stay here to calm them down first and try to convince them to put it off. I will go and come back quickly.”
“But you go there, and I will be worried about you, My Lady.” Steward Qiu smiled bitterly.
Gu Qinghan explained, “Don’t worry. My hometown is in Jiangling, and I am familiar with that place.”
Yang Ning announced all of a sudden, “I will go with my aunt. With me, she will be safe and sound.”